Absorbent articles for feminine hygiene are known in the art. Typical examples include sanitary napkins, pantyliners, vaginal tampons or interlabial pads. Such articles are often used to absorb and retain bodily fluids and other exudates excreted by the human body.
Fluids are often retained in absorbent articles within an absorbent element comprising absorbent materials which often include superabsorbent materials, such as absorbent gelling materials (AGM), usually in finely dispersed form, e.g. typically in particulate form. Conventional superabsorbent materials known in the art for use in absorbent articles typically comprise water insoluble, water swellable, hydrogel forming crosslinked absorbent polymers which are capable of absorbing large quantities of liquids and of retaining such absorbed liquids under moderate pressure. In general, absorbent articles for feminine hygiene comprising conventional absorbent gelling materials commonly have good absorption and retention characteristics to bodily fluids such as menses. However there is still a need to provide an absorbent article for feminine hygiene which keeps a pleasant visual appearance during and after its usage. Furthermore, it would be desirable to make the user aware of the fact that the article is saturated and needs consequently to be replaced.
The inventors have now found a way to solve these problems, by providing an absorbent article for feminine hygiene comprising an iron complexing agent which changes the menses color when it comes into contact with them.